Lady Rebels rule 2A-4 WestCOAL HILL — The Johnson County Westside Lady Rebels have continued their roll through the 2A-4 West Conference. The Lady Rebels are 19-2 on the season, 10-0 in their conference and have won games by audacious scores like 68-14 (over Hartford), 70-25 (over Eureka Springs) and 61-14 (over Decatur). “It’s going great,” Lady Rebels head coach Shannon McBee said. “But at the same time, it’s been tough. I’m trying to keep this team ready for distric...

Sand Lizards spurned by Trojans in overtimeSUBIACO — The Dardanelle Sand Lizards were defeated by the Subiaco Trojans 60-57 on Tuesday. Dardanelle led 12-11 after the first period but slipped behind 27-19 by halftime. “Subiaco is a very tough place to play,” Sand Lizards head coach Russell Sturdivant said. “I felt like we let our guard down in the second quarter. We were not very tough in that quarter, and it was the difference in the game.” Dardanelle roared back to life in the third ...

Lady Gators spoil Lamar homecomingLAMAR — The Two Rivers Lady Gators defeated the Lamar Lady Warriors 50-35 on Friday on Lamar’s basketball homecoming. The Lady Gators led 17-7 after the first period and 26-17 at halftime. “We shot the ball well from the outside early,” Two Rivers head coach Lyn Alexander said. “That opened up the inside for Grace (Coates).” Coates nearly finished the night with a triple-double. Coates had 21 points, 12 rebounds and seven blocks. Tia Gadberry ...

RHS to host Colors Day todayThe Russellville Cyclones and Lady Cyclones will celebrate Colors Day inside Cyclone Arena. The Cyclones will take on Little Rock Catholic Rockets, while the Lady Cyclones face the Mount Saint Mary Belles. The Cyclones dominated the Greenwood Bulldogs 69-33 on Friday, while the Rockets are coming off a 56-34 loss to Van Buren. The Lady Cyclones topped Greenwood 46-35, while Mount Saint Mary was defeated 51-21 by Van Buren on Friday. The Lady C...

Pirates plunder Pottsville Colors DayPOTTSVILLE — The Dover Pirates defeated the Pottsville Apaches 43-41 on Friday during Colors Day inside George Jones Gymnasium. “We dug ourselves too deep of a hole by not rebounding and coming up with loose balls,” Pottsville head coach Shane Thurman said. Dover led 16-5 after the first period and 24-11 at halftime. “I give Dover a lot of credit,” Thurman said. “They were quicker to the ball in the first half. When they got extra possessions,...

RHS Lady Whirlwinds top ConwayCONWAY — The Russellville Lady Whirlwinds defeated the Conway Blue Junior Lady Wampus Cats 34-31 on Thursday. Russellville trailed 10-8 after the first period but took an 18-17 lead at halftime. “This game was huge for us,” Lady Whirlwinds head coach Chase White said. “Especially on the road. I think Conway Blue is one of the top teams in our conference, and our girls showed a lot of heart playing all the way to the end.” Russellville went up ...

Cyclones Mercy Rule GreenwoodBY TRAVIS SIMPSON sports@couriernews.com GREENWOOD — The Russellville Cyclones snapped a three-game losing skid with a 69-33 Mercy Ruling over the Greenwood Bulldogs on Friday inside H.B. Stewart Bulldog Arena. Russellville built up a 39-15 lead in the first half. The Cyclones led 18-5 after the first period and led by as many as 31-7 at one point in the second. Zach Carter hit a 3-pointer and Marquis Rhode a layup for an early 8-2 lead. Rhode...

Lady Apaches stay perfect in 4A-4 playPOTTSVILLE — The Pottsville Lady Apaches defeated the Baptist Prep Lady Eagles 52-33 on Tuesday inside George Jones Gymnasium. Pottsville (14-5, 6-0 4A-4 Conference) took a 19-5 lead after the first period and led 25-13 at halftime. The Lady Apaches held the Lady Eagles to 10 points throughout the rest of the game. Ashley Brannon led Pottsville in scoring with 10 points. Aspen Campbell scored nine points, while Skylar Campbell scored eight poi...

Crane receives AHSCA All-Star selectionThe Arkansas High School Coaches Association (AHSCA) named Danville Little Johns head football coach as assistant coach to the West team for the 2016 All-Star football game. The AHSCA released the 2016 All-Star coaches for football, volleyball, cheer and dance on Tuesday. Crane, who has received the honor three times in his career, said it was an honor each time. “Anytime your peers vote you in for something like this, it’s pretty special,” Cr...

Ealy’s triple-double lifts Lady Cyclones over BryantWhen Tori Underhill’s 3-pointer with 3:48 left in the game put the Russellville Lady Cyclones back on top, it also ended a back-and-forth affair and led to Russellville’s eventual 54-50 victory over the Bryant Lady Hornets on Tuesday inside Cyclone Arena. Bryant answered Underhill’s trey with a field goal, but Alyssa Owens and Abbie Looper fired in five unanswered points (3-pointer from Owens, layup from Looper) to put the Lady Cyclones up 50-...

Hornets sting Cyclones, 57-43The Russellville Cyclones couldn’t outshoot the Bryant Hornets during Tuesday’s 57-43 loss inside Cyclone Arena. The Cyclones (9-7, 1-3 7A/6A-Central Conference) slipped behind 25-23 by halftime after leading 15-13 at the end of the first period. Bryant opened the game with a 4-0 run, but a 3-pointer from Jacob Boles and layup from Matt Laws put Russellville on top. A technical foul against Marques Rhode gave the Hornets a temporary 12-10 lead...

Lady Pirates defeat Baptist PrepLITTLE ROCK — The Dover Lady Pirates defeated the Baptist Prep Lady Eagles 56-39 on Friday. Dover led 12-9 after the first period and 28-22. Alyssa Williamson and Kelsi Hottinger opened the game with a volley of 3-pointers to help put the Lady Pirates up 12-9 after the first period. Taylor Mefford joined the mix with two treys in the second period. Williamson scored six points, while Shelbu Hartzell chipped in a field goal for a 28-22 lead at ...

Lady Rebels roll early against MagazineMAGAZINE — The Johnson County Westside Lady Rebels thundered past the Magazine Lady Rattlers 56-22 on Friday. The Lady Rebels (16-2, 6-0 2A-4 West) outscored Magazine 19-7 in the first period and held the Lady Rattlers to just 15 points throughout the rest of the game on their way to the lopsided victory. Ashlyn Stricklin led in scoring with 15 points. Madison Shelton scored nine points. Hailey Weathers scored eight points. Delanei Hurt scored...

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Courier sports staffThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Jr. Apaches stay perfectDARDANELLE — The Pottsville Junior Apaches stayed perfect with a 36-17 win over the Dardanelle Junior Sand Lizards on Thursday. Pottsville improved to 16-0 on the season and 6-0 in the 4A-4 Conference. “We had to work for every point we scored tonight,” Junior Apaches head coach Garrett Hill said. “Dardanelle did a good job of speeding us up a little, so it took us a while to settle down. I was really proud of our defense. After the first quar...

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Courier sports staffThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Two Rivers prepares for Paris testBY TRAVIS SIMPSON sports@couriernews.com OLA — Lyn Alexander isn’t sure if there’s ever been a bigger women’s basketball game at Two Rivers than today’s match-up between the Lady Gators and the Paris Lady Eagles. Both teams are undefeated in the 3A-4 Conference and are ranked in the top five by the Arkansas Democrat Gazette. Alexander isn’t worried ... much. “They are well coached,” he said. “They shoot it very well. All of them do. You can’t ...

Pirates fall to Baptist PrepDOVER — Pirates head coach James Roby was happy with the effort during Friday’s 43-32 loss to the Baptist Prep Eagles. “The boys played extremely hard,” he said. “And with a lot of heart. Our defense was the best it’s been all year. They played with their hearts out the whole game.” Dover (13-5, 2-3 4A-4 Conference) trailed 8-3 after the first period. The Pirates lone shot in the first came on a trey from Kyle Chenowith. Chenowith pitched in a...

RHS to host coaches karaoke SaturdayThe biggest change at the fourth annual RussVegas Coaches Karaoke on Saturday inside the Russellville Center for the Arts will be the coaches. Russellville hired several new coaches over the last year, and this year’s show will be their first exposure to the event. “Coach Billy Dawson will probably do something,” Cyclones athletic director Johnny Johnson said. “As will Matt Hall, Sherry White and Will McCrotty. This is their first year to get ...

Lady Cyclones rally to beat Siloam SpringsSILOAM SPRINGS — After trailing at the end of three periods, the Russellville Lady Cyclones came from behind in the fourth for a 44-34 victory over the Siloam Springs Panthers on Friday. Shameka Ealy hit a jumper and Alyssa Owens and Abbie Looper combined on a pair of 3-pointers in the fourth period to put the Lady Cyclones up 36-32 with 5:38 left in the game. The Lady Panthers stopped the 8-0 run with a jumper, but Ealy followed with an old-f...

Pottsville sweeps DardanelleDARDANELLE — The Pottsville Apaches defeated Dover 44-34 on Friday. The Apaches trailed 12-8 after the first period and 21-18 at halftime, but Pottsville established a 33-23 lead at the end of the third. “I thought we did a great job of executing our defensive game plan,” Apaches head coach Shane Thurman said. “Jacob Chisum came off the bench and got us going offensively. His contribution was huge tonight.” Pottsville was led by Kyle Reynolds ...

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Courier sports staffThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

RHS to host 6A state hoops tourneyRussellville will host the Class 6A State Basketball Tournament March 1-5 after its bid was approved by the Arkansas Activities Association (AAA) over Lake Hamilton. Like Russellville, Lake Hamilton recently completed construction on a new arena. Russellville Athletic Director Johnny Johnson said he wasn’t sure what swayed the vote in the Cyclones’ favor. “You never know,” he said. “And you don’t know how many votes you got, but I’m sure it wa...